The Perfect Hearth's Warming
Celestia smiled as she set aside the latest letter from her faithful student. It was wonderful to read about all of the things Twilight was learning and know what a fine young mare she was blossoming into. She yawned and picked up a book in her magic when Luna burst in through her door, pointing towards the windows.
“Sister, did you see? It’s snowing!” Luna pranced in place. “Oh, this is so exciting!”
Celestia chuckled. “It’s just some snow, Luna, and it’s been scheduled for weeks.”
Luna pouted. “Those silly weather schedules you've insisted on creating since I was gone are no fun.” She stuck her tongue out at Celestia before smiling. “But don’t you know what this means? It is winter now, and Hearth’s Warming is just around the corner.”
Celestia brought her hoof to her lips. “Goodness, that's right. Hearth’s Warming is your favorite holiday, isn’t it?”
Luna nodded her head enthusiastically. “Yes, that's right. The tree all decorated with ornaments, gifts from the heart, time spent around the fire as you watch the snow drift by the windows...” Luna squealed. “Oh, I’m just so excited!”
Celestia smiled and stood up from her pillow. She couldn’t remember the last time Luna had been so excited about something. She walked over to her sister and nuzzled her neck. “I’ll give you the perfect Hearth’s Warming, little sister.”
Celestia walked through corridor after corridor, slowly leaving the newer, warmer ones for older, dustier ones. The guards at her sides were just as on edge as they would be in the Everfree Forest, jumping at cobwebs fluttering in the draft and pointing their horns at dust bunnies hiding in corners. She rolled her eyes and grinned.
“You know, the worst threat we’re likely to encounter here is a spider,” she whispered conspiratorially.
Startled by the sound of her voice, they briefly stopped in their tracks, jaws agape and eyes wide. She chuckled as they hurried to catch up with her.
After a few more minutes of walking, she spotted what she was looking for: a set of doors ornately decorated with carvings of the sun.
“We’re here,” she said. “Wait outside for me.”
Celestia opened the doors to the bedroom she’d used centuries ago and was hit with a wave of stale air. She coughed and walked across a carpet that had once held a woven image of a sunny sky. Now all it held was dust that entered the air in clouds wherever she stepped.
Stopping in front of the closet, she delicately pulled a box out from under piles of ratty clothes. Inside of it she found old Hearth's Warming decorations in poor repair: her and Luna's old stockings, musty and full of holes; Hearth's Warming ornaments shattered into shards and dust; sticks that at one time must have been garlands. All things that at one time had been special yet now were simply junk.
Celestia frowned as she examined the objects suspended in the golden glow of her magic. No matter how much she stared at them, though, they were still completely beyond repair. She sighed, put everything back into the box, and shoved it into its spot in the closet. Taking a deep breath to steel herself, she walked to the door and turned to the guards. “Go and request your captain’s best plain clothes guards.”
The soldiers saluted and asked, “What’s the mission, Your Highness?”
“The most dangerous mission possible this time of year: shopping.”
Celestia walked down the streets of Canterlot, countless hooffalls resounding off the cobblestones in a disorganized din. Despite the snow continuing to fall, the steady hoof traffic prevented any from sticking to the ground. Unfortunately, that didn’t preclude it from sticking to her, and she adjusted her scarf with a shiver.
She kept her eyes peeled, simultaneously taking in the sights and looking for her destination. The last time she had been to this part of Canterlot it had been desolate dirt paths, and now it was one of the most bustling areas in the city. She shook her head and smiled. She really needed to get out more.
Her eyes widened as the Sire’s and Roebuck sign came into view, and she cut across the street towards it, not bothering to apologize to the ponies who didn’t get out of her way. She walked into the store with a smile that quickly fell into a grimace as the heated air began to melt the snow clinging to her coat. She quickly brushed the slush off of herself with her magic.
Celestia turned back to one of her guards. “This is the place, right?”
He nodded. “Yes, Your Highness. They have pretty much everything here, so we’ll definitely find stockings and ornaments.” He looked past her into the aisles and his eyebrows shot up. “Wow, I’ve never seen this place so empty this time of year.”
Celestia followed his gaze and groaned. The aisles were busy, with barely any space to move for a pony of her size. “Let’s hurry, then, and not test our luck.”
As they walked away from the cashier, the guards glanced at the pile of objects lofted in Celestia’s magic warily.
“Uh, Princess,” one of them said, “weren’t we just going to get stockings and ornaments?”
Celestia nodded happily as she placed the pile of jewelry, brushes, and instruments—among other things—onto the floor. “Oh yes, that was the plan, but there was just so much good stuff, and I’m not passing up this opportunity to spoil Luna.”
The other guard bit his lip. “Why are you putting them on the floor, Princess?”
Celestia looked between the two guards, eyebrow raised. “So that you two can take it all back to the castle, of course. I need to go get a tree still.”
Before either of her guards could respond, she teleported away.
Golden light coalesced as Princess Celestia appeared above a densely wooded forest. She flared her wings and was immediately buffeted by strong winds. She frantically cast a bubble shield around herself, and looked around as she got reoriented. Her fears were confirmed as she looked towards the rapidly graying sky.
She flew quickly as she searched for the perfect tree. Finally, in the last vestiges of light, she found it. It was taller than most Hearth’s Warming trees, but not so large as to be impractical. The needles were a rich green, and it looked exceptionally healthy.
Celestia cleanly cut the tree down with a precise beam of magic, and caught it in her magic field before it could drop. Panting slightly from the exertion, she teleported back to the castle.
Celestia yawned as she trudged down the castle's corridors, but not even her tired eyes or aching hooves could keep the smile from her face. The tree—along with the stockings, ornaments and gifts—had been successfully placed inside the room she had requisitioned for her and Luna’s private Hearth’s Warming. When she finally reached her door, Luna was blocking her way.
“Oh, good night, Luna. Is there anything I can do for you?”
Luna glared at her. “I saw the strangest thing earlier. It looked like several of your guards were carrying bags full of expensive goods. When I asked them about it, they ran away from me in fear.”
Celestia smiled awkwardly. “Ah, that was just, uh…”
When Celestia didn’t continue, Luna sighed. She frowned at her elder sister, but the anger was gone from her gaze, replaced with an emotion Celestia couldn’t quite pin down. “Sister, Hearth’s Warming is only a week and a half away. When will we begin preparing for it?”
Celestia’s smile gained strength as she answered, “I’ve already begun preparing. Don’t worry, Luna, I’ll take care of everything this year.”
Luna’s eyes flew open wide, and she sputtered for a moment before clearing her throat. “Ah, o-of course. Good night, Celestia.”
Luna teleported away, and Celestia’s smile fell into a frown as she tilted her head and furrowed her brow.
Celestia knocked on her sister’s door. She hadn’t seen her sister once in the week and a half since that night, and she could feel a pit, heavy as lead, constantly growing in her stomach. When there was no reply, she knocked again.
When Luna still didn’t respond, she took a deep breath. “It’s Hearth’s Warming Eve, Sister! I’ve had the cooks prepare a feast of all of your favorite foods.” Silence.
Celestia waited a few minutes more, but there was still no reply. Sighing, she rested her head against the door and weakly said, “I love you, Luna.” A few deep breaths later, she walked away.
Celestia hurried around the room, frantically hanging garlands and lighting candles to complete last minute preparations. As she was lighting the hearth, Luna walked in.
Just as summer was the season of the sun, winter belonged to the moon, and winter had been kind to Luna in the week and a half since Celestia had last seen her. The magic loss she had suffered as the Elements tore the Nightmare from her was already beginning to heal. Her legs were slightly longer, stars were starting to appear in her mane again, and her coat was growing darker in patches and dapples.
"Good morning, Sister," Luna grumbled.
"Good morning, Luna, and happy Hearth's Warming." Celestia smirked and leaned towards her sister. "I have to say, it's been adorable watching you go through puberty again.” Luna grumbled and Celestia felt her chest tighten. “You’ve even been acting like a teenager again!”
Luna rolled her eyes and looked around the room. Celestia bit her lip and fidgeted as she watched her, waiting for the smile and cheers sure to come. Instead, anger flamed to life in Luna's eyes, and Celestia’s heart began to sink.
“Those stockings have no heart in them. Where are our old ones?”
“Well, they were destroyed.”
Luna scoffed. “We could have made new ones that were better than those… things. And why is this tree so large?”
Celestia felt sweat begin to collect on her brow. “I wanted to get the best one.”
Luna glared and pointed a hoof at the stack of presents under the tree. “Sister, why would you get me so many gifts? You know we swore off large gifts because of how uncomfortable it makes me.”
Celestia bit her lip. It felt like there was a memory there, but it was so fuzzy. “I’m sorry, I just thought—”
“Oh, you thought what? That it doesn’t matter what your little sister thinks? That you should just do all of the Hearth’s Warming preparations on your own? What if I wanted to help, Celestia?” She snorted, glaring at Celestia. “But no, it’s all about you still, isn’t it? I want to get mass-produced stockings instead of making new ones, I want to get the largest tree without asking my sister if she even likes it, or I want to shower my sister in gifts without giving her the opportunity to return the favor!”
Celestia’s lips quivered as she looked around the room at all of the things she had spent weeks setting up—all the things Luna hated. She clenched her eyes shut and finally, like a violin string snapping, she cried out, “Why won’t you just admit that you hate me?!” Panting for breath, Celestia opened her eyes and realized she was crying. Luna stared at her, mouth hanging open, eyes wide and eyebrows furrowed.
As the words she had said finally caught up to her, Celestia sputtered and stammered, “I-I… I-I’m sorry, this was clearly a m-mistake, I’ll just g-go get some maids to clean up this m-m-mess and then you can… y-you can just forget this ever happened.” She forced a smile on her face.
Turning, she only took one step before she was enveloped in blue magic. “W-what? Luna, let me go!”
Luna’s only response was to place her in front of the hearth. Celestia whimpered and shook as she stared into the flames. Her plans had been meticulous. She had bought all the perfect presents, sparkly new stockings. She had picked out a tree that would surely make anypony jealous. And yet it had all gone wrong.
She was interrupted from her thoughts by the sounds of hoofsteps growing nearer. Luna sat next to her and floated a steaming mug in front of her nose.
“I made you some cocoa, Sister. It is not the best, but I remember how much you loved it.”
Celestia smiled slightly at the calming tone of her sister’s voice and the rich smell of the cocoa. “Thank you.”
Luna stared sadly at her sister. “Tia… why do you think that I hate you?”
Watching the whipped cream slowly melt into the cocoa, Celestia replied, “How could you not? I failed to see the signs that anything was wrong with you. I failed you.”
“It isn’t reasonable to blame yourself for my foolishness. I made my choices, and I received the punishment I deserved.”
“But I was the older sister, Luna! I was supposed to take care of you after our parents...” She sighed. “But I was bitter that I didn't get the childhood that you had, and I never showed you how much you really meant to me. You had to pay the price for me not being good enough.” She looked to the ground, frowning. “I wanted this to be perfect for you. Hearth’s Warming is in winter—your season—and if I could make it perfect I could finally show you how special you really are.”
“Sister… I don’t love Hearth’s Warming because it’s in winter, or because of the gifts or the tree or the decorations—those are just some things that I like. What makes me love Hearth’s Warming is that I get to do it with you.”
Celestia sniffled and smiled. “I love you, little moon.” She wrapped a wing around Luna and pulled her close; Luna leaned in against her withers.
“And I love you, big sis.”
Gazing into the fire with the weight of her sister resting against her—feeling the warmth of the hearth and the heart—Celestia began to gently sing,
“The fire of friendship lives in our hearts
As long as it burns, we cannot drift apart.”
Celestia trailed off as Luna continued,
“Though quarrels arise, their numbers are few
Laughter and singing will see us through.”
And together, they finished,
“We are a circle of pony friends
A circle of friends we'll be to the very end.”
Luna chuckled. “Although we aren’t much of a circle with just the two of us, now are we?”
Celestia smiled, looking at the falling snow through the window. “Perhaps not, but I’m feeling pretty content with just two right now.”
